Reporters Without Borders
Published: Jan 28, 2026 8:00 AM
Updated: 11:05 AM
COMMENT | Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls on the Malaysian authorities to put an end to the investigation targeting journalist Rex Tan, arrested on suspicion of “sedition” simply for having asked a question at a public lecture on Gaza.
Instead, authorities should focus on protecting the journalist, who resigned from the online news site Free Malaysia Today, due to the harassment he faced after the lecture.
RSF warns this is a new episode in the misuse of the country’s Sedition Act, which continues to pose a serious threat to press freedom in Malaysia.
On Jan 17, 2026, Tan was arrested and detained for half a day, from midnight to around 1pm by police in Kuala Lumpur as part of an investigation into an alleged violation of Section 4(1) of the Sedition Act, as well as Section 505(c) of the Penal Code, which criminalises the circulation of a report or rumour “with intent to incite, or which is likely to incite” public mischief.
He was released on bail, but his phone was seized for the ongoing investigation. In Malaysia, the offence of sedition is punishable by up to three years in prison.
Rex Tan (right) and his lawyer Rajsurian Pillai
Five days earlier, Tan attended a public conference on the crisis in Gaza at the International Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies Malaysia, a think tank, during which he asked a question about combating xenophobia and drew a historical parallel between the Palestinian cause and the situation of ethnic Chinese communities in Malaysia.
A video of this moment was widely shared online and sparked heated controversy in a country with a multiethnic society where inter-communal issues remain highly sensitive.
In the days following the video’s publication, Tan became the target of a wave of online attacks, which included threats of physical violence against him and his family and doxxing (disclosure of his personal data).
Faced with this intense harassment, he issued a public apology on Free Malaysia Today, stating that he had never intended to inflame communal tensions, and resigned from the portal in an attempt to defuse the situation.
In response to Tan’s arrest, the Malaysian Media Council - an independent self-regulatory body that weighs on media ethics and dispute resolution - denounced the “unnecessary and punitive” measure and warned that it reflected poorly on the government’s commitment to press freedom.
Five days earlier, Tan attended a public conference on the crisis in Gaza at the International Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies Malaysia, a think tank, during which he asked a question about combating xenophobia and drew a historical parallel between the Palestinian cause and the situation of ethnic Chinese communities in Malaysia.
A video of this moment was widely shared online and sparked heated controversy in a country with a multiethnic society where inter-communal issues remain highly sensitive.
In the days following the video’s publication, Tan became the target of a wave of online attacks, which included threats of physical violence against him and his family and doxxing (disclosure of his personal data).
Faced with this intense harassment, he issued a public apology on Free Malaysia Today, stating that he had never intended to inflame communal tensions, and resigned from the portal in an attempt to defuse the situation.
In response to Tan’s arrest, the Malaysian Media Council - an independent self-regulatory body that weighs on media ethics and dispute resolution - denounced the “unnecessary and punitive” measure and warned that it reflected poorly on the government’s commitment to press freedom.
“It is shocking that in democratic Malaysia, a journalist could be charged on suspicion of ‘sedition’ for simply asking a controversial question in public.
“We urge authorities to immediately drop this investigation and take concrete action to abolish the infamous Sedition Act on which they are based.
“Any ethical concerns about journalists’ work should be dealt with by the Malaysian Media Council, not through criminal courts,” director of the RSF Asia-Pacific Bureau, Cedric Alviani, said.
Worrying use of sedition charges against journalists
Despite a relative improvement in press freedom in recent years - highlighted by Malaysia’s rise from 101st place in 2020 to 88th out of 180 countries in the 2025 RSF World Press Freedom Index, journalists and independent media outlets continue to be regularly targeted in Malaysia.
The vaguely worded Sedition Act, which carries a considerable prison sentence, has long been used to stifle reporters, creating an environment of self-censorship as news professionals fear reprisals for their work.
Before Tan, the most recent example occurred in October 2023, when Malaysian journalist and publisher Kean Wong was detained for 24 hours as part of a police investigation into a political book the government banned because its cover illustration caricaturised the national coat of arms, which was deemed an “affront to public order”.
Although the investigation into Wong has been completed, the case has not been dropped.
REPORTERS WITHOUT BORDERS is an international non-profit and NGO that promotes and defends the freedom to be informed and to inform others globally.
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